


it's been a long day without you, my friend

by ackermanx



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes, Fire Emblem: Rekka no Ken | Fire Emblem: Blazing Sword
Genre: F/M, Gen, writing this made me cry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-10
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2019-01-31 12:36:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12682026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ackermanx/pseuds/ackermanx
Summary: (and i'll tell you all about it when i see you again)somehow, through fate or pure luck, eliwood, ninian, and roy reunite





	it's been a long day without you, my friend

**Author's Note:**

> "please, let this song die already" no. it's perfect for angst
> 
> thank you based feh for providing so many loopholes, this has proved so useful, "no it hasnt you just have more rarepairs now" well yes but
> 
> ANYWAYS. i did cry while writing this. have fun y'all

Eliwood knew this was coming.

 

He's known for years, really. When Ninian had first decided to stay in this world, Nils had warned that her life force would slowly be sapped. But of course Ninian knew - she probably had known all her life - and yet she still clung to Eliwood's side, insistent, saying teary goodbyes to her brother while reassuring him that she would be fine.

 

He'd known for years, but it was oh-so-easy to forget.

 

When Roy and Lilina were born, Ostia and Pherae went wild with joy, as did their respective royal families. In the end, the old gang decided to reunite at Castle Pherae, if only because so many of them lived in close proximity. Ninian's "condition," as it was delicately put, was forgotten by everyone, including Ninian herself, as they cooed and fussed over the two new additions to their giant family.

 

It was only when Ninian fainted in the middle of a stroll that everyone started panicking.

 

Everyone, that is, except for Ninian.

 

She kept smiling, kept laughing, kept acting like nothing was wrong - and one could almost believe her, if it weren't for the way that she looked at Eliwood and Roy when she thought that no one was watching, like they would disappear at any moment and she hadn't had enough of them yet.

 

Eliwood knew this was coming, and yet he wasn't ready when it came.

 

* * *

 

 

Roy couldn't remember much about his mother, and that scared him.

 

He _did_ remember blue hair, nights spent dancing ("this'll be our little secret, okay?"), a soft voice, and someone that made him feel safe in ways that his father couldn't.

 

But no matter how hard he tried, no matter how many stories he heard his father tell, Roy could never piece together a complete picture of the mystery that was Ninian.

 

One thing that he was absolutely sure of, no matter how much his memories shifted, was the sheer magnitude of Eliwood's affections. Father loved Mother while she was alive, of that Roy had no doubt, but he had a feeling that not many people could devote themselves to one person for their entire life.

 

When he couldn't sleep, Roy would often sneak over to his father's room with a blanket and camp out in front of the door. If the deep timbre of Eliwood's voice didn't lull Roy to sleep, him talking to Ninian soothed the boy, if only because of the pretend normalcy of it all.

 

"Darling," Eliwood would always start off. "If only you were here during the day!"

 

He'd go on to describe the rest of his day - something that Roy did that was particularly interesting, meetings he went to, the latest noble that he had annoyed with his new decrees. Roy never understood half of it, but that was never the point. If he closed his eyes and focused hard enough, he could imagine Mother in her flowing dress, curled in an armchair next to the fire and gently giggling at the stories that father weaves with his words and his well-timed sound effects.

 

(And if, the next morning, Roy wakes up with outstretched arms and an excited smile on his face - only to have both drop when he realizes who he's looking for isn't there anymore - he doesn't tell his father, because Roy doesn't want to see his father be sad again. No more.)

 

* * *

 

 

Roy couldn't remember much about his mother, but he did know that the woman standing in front of him was most definitely _her_.

It didn't matter that he didn't quite recognize her. The image matched up with the countless descriptions that Father used to give, with the blue dress and the nervous expression and the soft voice that he had heard so many times as a child.

 

And if that didn't give it away, the tears forming her eyes as soon as she laid eyes on Roy would have done the trick.

 

"You...know each other?"

 

Sharena speaks up from her position on the sidelines with Alfonse, Anna, and Kiran, fingers frozen around the end of her ponytail as her eyes widen in shock. She looks back and forth between the two people and another question forms on her lips, but Kiran nudges her gently and she shuts her mouth.

 

"We'll leave you two here to catch up, if you want," Kiran says gently, a smile waking its way onto their face. "I'll be back in ten minutes or so to show you back to the castle grounds and your rooms."

 

"Thank you, I..." Roy manages to force out, but he supposes it's all that Kiran needs, because they turn back around and start leading the small group away after a few more waves.

 

Roy only trusts himself to turn back around when he and Ninian are alone, but even then, he can't stop the tears from falling freely when Ninian rushes forward to embrace him.

 

" _Roy,_ " she whispers into his hair. "My son - you've grown so _much_ , I must have missed everything, I'm so sorry - "

 

"Ninia - Mom," Roy chokes out. "Mom, you're here alive, and that's more than enough."

 

* * *

 

 

"...Another war? But...but I thought we had gotten rid of...Nergal..."

 

"You did! He wasn't the problem - well, isn't the problem - actually." Roy cuts himself off, pushing a hand through his hair in frustration. "I should let Father tell you if - when - he gets here."

 

Kiran, who had stayed quiet during most of the walk back to the castle, looks up at that. "Your father...sorry for intruding, but - Ninian, that would make Eliwood your husband, yes?"

  
"Oh! Yes, of course..."

 

Ninian's eyes visibly brighten as she raises her head to look at Kiran. "Is he here? It would be...nice to see Eli again."

 

"About that...not yet."

 

Kiran immediately regrets their decision when Ninian mouths a soft "oh" and her face falls. "But - ! But I've been trying - you see, summoning is extremely finicky and sometimes I even end up with multiples of the same Hero and have to send them back - "

 

"Lord Kiran - "

 

"Just Kiran is fine. Please."

 

"Kiran, then." Ninian smiles, and despite the disappointment she must be feeling, her smile is still warm. "Don't worry about it. Just the thought is more than enough for me."

 

"Oh..." Kiran laughs awkwardly and can't help sending an embarrassed smile back. "You really are too kind. But what I wanted to say is I'm actually trying to summon Eliwood right now. Roy's been coming with me to the summoning grounds whenever I have enough orbs to do a summon, just in case I do succeed, and you're more than welcome to join him, Ninian."

 

"Could I?"

 

Kiran nods once, and Ninian clasps both theirs and Roy's hands out of sheer excitement, a radiant grin already starting to spread across her face. "Oh, thank you all! How can I ever pay you back?"

 

"You don't need to worry about that, really! Just hang in there, and I'll get your family to you, yeah?"

 

* * *

 

 

"Ninian! Roy!...Hello? Are you there?"

 

Kiran knocks on Ninian's door once more, feeling...a little foolish, to be completely honest. They had assumed that Roy would want to spend the night with his newly-summoned mother, especially given their background. But maybe they were wrong; Roy was a fairly strong individual, emotionally and physically, and Kiran themselves was still fairly new at this whole summoning thing. Maybe it was just be better to -

 

Roy opens the door, hair a mess and absentmindedly scratching the side of his face. "Hm? Did you need someth - oh, Kiran! Sorry, I just. Wasn't expecting anyone. You seem fired up, though, is everything alright?"

 

Grinning, Kiran leans against the wall, directly opposite from Roy. "Everything is more than alright, actually. Get Ninian, we're going to the summoning grounds."

 

Eyes widening, Roy disappear briefly, only to reappear in record time with a freshly awakened Ninian. She takes in the scene slowly, blinking rapidly, then turns her full attention onto Kiran.

 

Kiran takes one look at the expression on her face and holds up a hand. "Before you say anything, yes, this is what you think it is."

 

"Oh - that's - that's wonderful!"

 

If Kiran thought that Ninian was happy before, she was positively _beaming_ now. "But...so soon? You don't have to do this...just for my sake, you know. We're perfectly fine with waiting."

 

"Yes, yes, I know, but I want to do this for you, so hush. Besides, I know that I can definitely get Eliwood this time, so you two should be there too."

 

Roy and Ninian share a look, then Roy squirms out from underneath Ninian's arm and dashes towards his own room, yelling "I'll be right back!" Kiran muffles a laugh of surprise - then the pure joy that Roy and Ninian had exhibited at just the _possibility_ that their family would be reunited hits them, and -

 

_Oh, boy, I really hope I don't screw this up._

 

* * *

 

 

Kiran holds their breath, loads orbs into Breidablik, aims, and fires.

 

First is Soren. Which would be great, but they had him already, so Soren gets sent home. Next is Lucius - _are you kidding me_ , Kiran thinks - which gets rid of all the non-red summoning spaces.

 

"Here goes nothing!" they call, dumping the last of their orbs in and taking one last shot.

 

The suspense is almost too much - the sheer slowness that it takes for a new Hero to appear lets Kiran know that this must be a new Hero that's on the way. But that by itself didn't mean much, because there must be tens of red units that he hadn't summoned yet - it was only when a silhouette started to appear and Roy let out a gasp that -

 

"My name is Eliwood. I'm a noble from a small realm known as Pherae. I hope I'll be of use to you."

 

_Oh my god. I did it._

 

Of course, the relief that Kiran felt upon seeing Eliwood's figure was nothing compared to the elation that Roy and Ninian must be feeling. Roy practically throws himself into his father's arms, a muffled " _Father!_ " the only thing that he can hear from the smaller boy, while Ninian stands in the background, one hand over her mouth and tears threatening to spill over in her eyes. 

 

Eliwood himself looks overwhelmed - Kiran could sympathize with that, it must be shocking to be thrown into a whole new world, especially one where the dead were living once more. He places a tentative hand on Roy's head and raises his head to look at Kiran in bewilderment, then turns to Ninian.

 

"Ninian, dear?" he whispers. "Is that really you?"

 

Ninian hiccups, finally stepping forward closer to Eliwood. "Yes...yes, it really is me. You're...here, I'm here..."

 

Laughing, Eliwood extends an arm to pull Ninian into their little family huddle and kisses her gently on the top of her head. "I've missed the both of you so much, you have no idea. This is...wonderful. This is absolutely wonderful."

 

( _I've done my job_ , Kiran thinks, silently edging away from the happy trio in order to give them some more space. But before they can get too far, Eliwood catches their eye.

 

 _Thank you so much_ , he mouths, nothing but gratitude shining in his eyes.

 

Kiran sends a smile and thumbs up back, and they swear they can feel tears pricking at the back of his eyes.

 

_Am I going to cry too? God, now I really need to go.)_

**Author's Note:**

> yell at me on twitter @axlotlols


End file.
